How to Expand the Length of a Novel

One thing I've read while prowling around on writing discussion boards is people who are concerned that their book isn't long enough. While the important thing is to tell the story thoroughly and well, more so than the word count, you do want to make sure you have a decent length novel--novellas do not sell well. So, here are some tips on how to make a novel longer if you think it is lacking.

Make sure all the scenes and plot elements are well developed. Sometimes, it is tempting to rush through a scene or gloss over a minor plot point in your rush to get the book written. However, these scenes may be important enough to the reader to understand what's going on that they want to read more. Maybe you mention a character's unusual quirk, but don't say more about it, which might strike the reader as odd or just disappoint them because they don't get to learn more about it. Expand on these--either give a flashback to give the back story, let the characters have a conversation about it, or in some other way give the reader more information. This can be done as quickly as in one sentence or could take chapters.

Show, don't tell. This expression is almost hackneyed, it's used so much, but it's a problem for many writers. Telling is fast. "She wore a green coat." However, you can tell us about the coat in a way that is interesting to read and shows us more about the character: "She lovingly laid her coat across the back of the chair, allowing her fingers to trail lovingly across it. For the briefest moment, a look of regret shadowed her eyes that bore the same emerald shade as the garment beneath her fingertips."

Let your characters talk. While you don't want the whole story to come out in dialogue, you should have some in there. Your characters' conversations can bring them to life and help your reader to fall in love with them. If you have a scene where two characters are traveling somewhere, and previously you left it as a brief transition, such as, "They drove to the store," you can add in a conversation while they drive to show the reader something about them or the story." Sometimes you do just need to skip from scene to scene, but this is often a place where some additional footage can be added to pad out the book. Just make sure that everything you put in furthers the story along or shows the reader something about the characters. Don't put in meaningless extra scenes just for bulk.

Go through your manuscript and look for opportunities to try these simple additions. You may find, before long, that you have added a great deal of length to your novel and have made the writing stronger in the process.